State golf: Titsworth tied for first; Aussem seventh

COLUMBUS — Even after Beau Titsworth learned he was leading following the first round of the Division I state golf tournament, his thoughts on Friday’s round didn’t change.

The St. Ignatius senior wasn’t happy.

Back-to-back bogeys to end the round were why, but the Avon Lake resident remains focused on his ultimate goal of helping St. Ignatius win the championship.

The Wildcats (318) are in fourth place, 10 strokes back of Dublin Jerome.

“We played all right,” he said. “That’s all you can hope for on the first day.”

Titsworth began his day hot, parring his first three holes and making birdie on the par-5 fourth. He got another birdie on No. 7 and made the turn 2 under, but bogeyed the 13th, 17th and 18th.

That left Titsworth in a tie atop the leaderboard with Upper Arlington freshman Justin Wick, who hit the shot of the day when he aced the 195-yard 13th.

“I was persistent,” Titsworth said. “I just kept hitting greens and not trying to make (long) putts. Just get it close.”

As for today, the attitude is simple: An individual title would be just a consolation prize if St. Ignatius finishes second or lower.

“Just win,” he said. “That’s it. That’s all we came here to do.”

Avon Lake’s Brendan Aussem felt former Ohio State coach Jim Brown had a grumpy day picking the pin locations that made the already difficult 7,043-yard layout even harder.

Even so, the “almost dead impossible” flags didn’t deter him from shooting a strong 4-over 75, putting him in position to earn All-Ohio status.

Aussem began his day with back-to-back birdies, giving him enough wiggle room to overcome bogeys on five of his next eight holes.

“No one ever wants to throw themselves out of contention on the first day,” said Aussem, who is seventh individually. “It’s more fun to be in contention on the last day. The low score is 72. It’s three shots off the lead. I’ll take that.”

In the Division I girls tournament on the Gray Course, Avon Lake freshman Niki Schroeder gladly took her 82 — a score that turned out to be better than expected when compared to the rest of the field.

Schroeder fired 41s on each nine, and is tied with five others in 21st place.

“I played OK,” she said. “I could have played better, of course, but you take what you take. The greens were quick, so that was my trouble today. I’ve just got to come in (today) and know what happened (Friday) is over. A 75 would be great.”

Magnificat’s Ali Nageotte, a sophomore from Westlake, shot a 73 and is tied for third.Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.